Archaeological Institutes, Scientific and Educational

Archaeological Institutes, Scientific and Educational

historical institutions that study diverse ancient remains of material cultures (archaeological remains) in order to reconstruct the past history of human society from the early developmental period of man until the Middle Ages.

Prerevolutionary Russia and the USSR. The oldest archaeological institute in Russia was founded by N. V. Kalachov in 1877 under private auspices in St. Petersburg. Persons with a university education were admitted as members of its audience. In addition to paleography, archaeo-graphy, and the study of archives, the institute offered courses in archaeology, numismatics, metrology, the history of law, ethnology, and other subjects. The institute published Sborniki (books 1–6, 1878–98), and from 1885, Vestnik arkheologii i istorii (Archaeology and History Herald; issues 1–23, 1885–1918). In 1907 an archaeological institute with an archaeology department and an archives department was established under private auspices in Moscow. After completing three years of instruction and defending a dissertation, students received the title of scientist-archaeologist or archivist. Lectures were given in the institute by V. A. Gorodtsov, S. I. Sobolevskii, and others. The institute began publishing Zapiski in 1909. In 1895 a Russian archaeological institute was opened in Constantinople for the study of Byzantine history and archaeology and the archaeology and history of the neighboring Balkan countries. From 1896 to 1912 the institute issued Izvestiia (vols. 1–16, Odessa-Sofia).

The Academy of the History of Material Culture, which was established in 1919 in Leningrad and had a branch in Moscow, became the organizational and scientific center of archaeology after the October Revolution; in 1937 the academy became part of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR. In addition to these central institutions, numerous local institutes were formed, among them the Kazan Northeastern Archaeological and Ethnologic Institute (1917), the Kiev Archaeological Institute (1918), and the Northern Caucasus Association of Scientific Research Institutes.

The Institute of Archaeology of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR in Moscow, with a branch in Leningrad, coordinates and directs the scholarly research and field studies of local related institutions. It has published Kratkie soob-shcheniia o dokladakh i polevykh issledovaniiakh since 1939, Materialy i issledovaniia po arkheologii SSSR since 1940, and the journal Sovetskaia arkheologiia since 1957. An institute of archaeology is affiliated with the Academy of Sciences of the Ukrainian SSR; an institute of archaeology and ethnology with the Academy of Sciences of the Armenian SSR; and institutes of history, archaeology, and ethnology with the academies of sciences of the Kazakh SSR, the Turkmen SSR, and the Georgian SSR. The Academy of Sciences of the Uzbek SSR has an institute of history and archaeology. Some Union and autonomous republics maintain departments or sections of archaeology within history institutes. Specialists in archaeology are trained in the archaeology departments of all the largest universities and through postgraduate work in universities and institutes of archaeology.

Foreign countries. Archaeological institutes began to appear in the mid-19th century, primarily as scientific centers promoting the study of archaeological and art remains in the countries of classical antiquity; later, they also acquired the function of organizing and conducting archaeological excavations. Teaching functions existed only to the extent required by young scholars for acquiring specialized skills and also for specific archaeological research. However, some of the modern archaeological institutes that are part of universities have partial, and sometimes even exclusive, teaching functions. The oldest archaeological institute was the Institute for Archaeological Correspondence, established with public funds as an international scientific center in Rome in 1829. It had brought about the publication of archaeological materials in Monumenti inediti (vols. 1–12, 1829–85), Annali del’Instituto di corrispondenza archeologica (vols. 1–57, 1829–85), and Bulletino (1829–85).

AUSTRIA. The Austrian Archaeological Institute, with a branch in Athens, was founded in Vienna in 1898.

BULGARIA. The Institute of Archaeology (now part of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences) has existed since 1921 as a center for fieldwork and research activity in Balkan archaeology.

CHINA. The Institute of Archaeology in Peking was founded in 1950. It directs excavations throughout the country and issues a publication on remains. Other major institutes are the Archaeological Institute in Sinkiang, and also, in part, the Institute of Paleontology in Nanking, the Institute of Geology, and the First Institute of History, founded in 1954, in Peking.

CZECHOSLOVAKIA. The Archaeological Institute of the Czechoslovakian Academy of Sciences in Prague, with a division in Brno, was founded in 1919. There is also the Archaeological Institute of the Slovak Academy of Sciences in Nitra.

FRANCE. Primitive archaeology is studied by the French Institute of Anthropology, which was founded in 1911. In 1846 the French School of Athens was licensed as an archaeological institute, devoting its activity to classical and Byzantine archaeology. It has published Bulletin de corres-pondance hellénique since 1877. The French School in Rome has also been in operation since the end of the 1870’s. It has published the nonperiodic collections Melanges d’archéologie et d’histoire since 1881. The Institute of Art and Archaeology is affiliated with the University of Paris. The Institute of Classical Archaeology is affiliated with the humanities department at the University of Lyons.

GERMAN DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC. The Institute of Prehistory and Early History of the German Academy of Sciences in Berlin was founded in 1954. It has published Ausgrabungen und Funde since 1956. Other major institutes are the Institute of Eastern Studies in Berlin, the Institute of Greek and Roman Antiquities in Berlin, and the Institute of Prehistory and Early History of the Humboldt University of Berlin, which has published Ethnographisch-archaologische Zeitschrift since 1960.

GREAT BRITAIN. The Archaeological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland was founded in the 1840’s. Publishing Archaeological Journal since 1844, the institute chiefly excavates castles, settlements, and burial grounds from the medieval period. The British School at Athens was founded in 1886, and the British School at Rome was founded in 1901.

HUNGARY. Archaeological research activity is concentrated in a special archaeological research group of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences established in 1952. It has published Studia Archaeologica since 1963.

INDIA. Archaeological Survey of India in New Delhi, founded in 1902, publishes the major archaeological and epigraphic publications.

ITALY. Archaeological research is conducted by the Italian Institute of Anthropology in Rome, founded in 1893, and the Institute of Etruscan and Italian Studies in Florence, established in 1926.

MEXICO. The National Institute of Anthropology and History, founded in 1850 in Mexico City, has a department of pre-Columbian monuments.

PERU. The State Department of Archaeology and the Institute and Museum of Archaeology are affiliated with the National University in Cuzco.

POLAND. The Institute of the History of Material Culture of the Polish Academy of Sciences in Warsaw, founded in 1953, is engaged in research in the archaeology of Poland. The Research Center for Mediterranean Archaeology, founded in 1956, carries out excavations in the countries of classical antiquity, particularly in Egypt.

PORTUGAL. The major archaeological institute is the Portuguese Archaeological, Historical, and Ethnologic Institute in Lisbon.

RUMANIA. The Institute of Archaeology of the Academy of Sciences of Rumania in Bucharest was founded in 1864.

SPAIN. Archaeological research activity is concentrated in the General Commission for Archaeological Excavations, which was founded in 1939. It has published Acta arqueológica hispánica since 1943, Noticiario Arqueológico Hispánico since 1953, and other publications. Other institutions are the Archaeological Institute of the City of Madrid and the Provincial Commission of Archaeological Excavations, established in 1946.

TUNISIA. The most important archaeological institution is the National Institute of Archaeology and the Arts in Tunis. It has published Notes et documents since 1958.

UNITED ARAB REPUBLIC. Research and reporting on monuments, chiefly from the later periods, are carried on at the Institute of Egypt in Cairo, founded in 1859, which includes the Section of Literature, Fine Arts, and Archaeology. Excavations of classical and primitive archaeological remains are conducted in Egypt by the Service of Egyptian Antiquities in Cairo.

USA. The major archaeological institution is the Archaeological Institute of America, founded in 1879 in New York, which began as a public organization. Its branches are the American School of Classical Studies of Athens, founded in 1881, and the American Academy in Rome, founded in 1897. It has published the American Journal of Archaeology since 1885 and Archaeology since 1948. In 1900 the American School of Oriental Research was established in New Haven (Conn.), with branches in Jerusalem and Baghdad. The school carries out archaeological excavations in the Near East.

VIETNAM (DRV). Archaeological research in the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV) is done by the Archaeology Section of the Institute of the History of Vietnam in affiliation with the Committee of Sciences of the DRV in Hanoi. It publishes Nghien Cuu Lich Su (Historical Research).

WEST BERLIN. The German Archaeological Institute has branches in Rome, Athens, Istanbul, Madrid, Cairo, and Baghdad, and also the Roman-German Commission in Frankfurt am Main (West Germany) as one of its divisions.

YUGOSLAVIA. The Archaeological Institute of the Serbian Academy of Sciences in Belgrade was founded in 1947. Institutes for the preservation of historical monuments in Belgrade, Ljubljana, Split, Zagreb, and Sarajevo are also engaged in archaeological work.

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